Hot on the heels of last week’s ‘Catching the 4th Wave of Coffee’ discussion at The Fumbally cafe, and recent trips to Melbourne, London and New York, here are 8 predictions for where the Dublin Coffee world is headed in the next few years.
1.) Rise of the Machines
Robot baristas are already a thing in San Fransisco and Japan, and they are coming to steal everyone’s jobs! Even stranger perhaps, is that some overseas specialty coffee shops are looking to the Nespresso model of capsules to ensure consistency and speedy service.
2.) Specialty Coffee In Food Establishments
Restaurants and hotels spend thousands on their décor and lose untold blood sweat and tears chasing michelin stars and other ratings. So why are the majority of them still serving poor coffee brewed from low grade beans? It’s only a matter of time.
3.) Coffee Turns Green(er)
Two million disposable coffee cups go into landfill every day in Ireland. Coffee production requires a hell of a lot of water, often in countries that don’t have much. Global warming is on the march. A few of myriad of issues that industry leaders will continue to try to solve.
4.) Home Brews
It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that, for someone that buys a €3 cup of coffee every day, most equipment purchased for home brewing will pay for itself in a matter of months. These days you can pick up a decent espresso machine for a couple of hundred euro. And they will only get better and cheaper.
5.) The Lost Art of Smiling
In terms of ‘sustainable practices’, paying more attention to the jug of warm milk your hand than the person who is handing over their hard-earned cash for it isn’t one. Being friendly will never go out of style and it is an area that some coffee shops have sadly neglected.
6.) Coffee University
In 2002 Cathal Brugha St launched the world’s first ever Culinary Arts Degree, turning what had long been a trade into a profession. There are now countless courses in wine to degree level and beyond. How long before a degree in Coffee Studies comes to Ireland?
7.) Late Opening Cafes
As the local cafe is seen more and more as an alternative to the pub, Dublin coffee shops will tap into this market. There’s a handful of spots around the city that are open late but there’s still much room for growth. Will we have caffeine-fuelled nightclubs by 2027? Not likely but it could happen.
8.) Specialty Coffee Hits the Countryside
As consumer knowledge and tastebuds continue to develop, good coffee will become normal. Dublin suburbs and commuter towns now all have a token speciality coffee shop. Next up are rural towns. Hopefully, soon there will be no need for the word ‘specialty’.
*******
In Conclusion, here’s a witty-yet-on-point prediction from coffee mag Spurdge:
“Fourth wave will be another golden age of coffee. We imagine a world that finally says please, no thank you to suboptimal/wasteful/expensive pods. Your morning coffee will be delivered by drone from the experts down the street, and Augmented Reality cafe environments will provide a sensory service experience we can’t begin to imagine.
Fourth wave will mean the end of point-of-sale, and will auger the dawn of avocado toast in pill form, under the counter grinders, timers that don’t beep but vibrate, condiment bars that have cinnamon again, and female World Champions for every last coffee competition (without it really being that big of a deal).”
Read the full article here.
